Goals Essay

It is critical in the goals essay found in almost every MBA application to show that you have clear direction and purpose based on experience and planning. Business school is not another opportunity to "find yourself."

8:00 AM. July 1, 2030. The 23rd floor of the Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong. A woman sitting behind the mahogany desk calls a Shanghai trader to buy 200,000 shares of Alibaba stock. Moments later, she dashes into a video conference with Tokyo analysts. When the conference finally concludes two hours later, the woman rushes down the stairs, hails a taxi to the Hong Kong International Airport, catches a flight to Thailand, and ends her day with a meeting with the CFO of Asus Computers.

I look forward to maintaining this busy schedule as a portfolio manager of an international equity fund about ten years after obtaining my MBA. The Top School academic experience can build on my public accounting training and my multi-cultural and multi-lingual background to prepare me for work first as an equity analyst in the mutual fund industry and ultimately as a portfolio manager specializing in Asian Pacific equities.

As a CPA and staff accountant with Big 4 for the past two and a half years, I have developed a solid foundation in teamwork, analytical, and problem-solving skills. As a bilingual associate of the Asia-Pacific Business Group, I specialize in auditing the financial statements of in-bound Asian businesses. However, while Big 4 provides expansive career opportunities in public accounting, I have reached a plateau in developing the analytical and management skills necessary to achieve my ultimate career goal of money management. In public accounting, we measure and examine financial transactions of the past. In contrast, money managers examine the current attributes of securities and attempt to predict their future performance to maximize return for investors. I crave that forward focus and challenge.

Furthermore, an effective manager in the 21st century must be well-versed in international business transactions. Although I have utilized my Chinese language skills in servicing our Asian clients and engaged in comparative technical analysis of U.S. GAAP and French, Taiwanese, and Japanese financial reporting requirements, my exposure to and knowledge of broader transactional issues such as international transfer pricing has been limited. Finally, as our audits focus mainly on the clients' compliance with U.S. GAAP and foreign accounting and reporting requirements, they provide deep dives and narrow windows; I want to learn about the "big picture" of international business.

A background in financial reporting and servicing Asia-Pacific business clients. The ability to converse fluently in Chinese. An understanding of Chinese, Japanese, and American cultures. I will bring these qualities to the Top School program and ultimately to my career in international investment management. As a first step toward achieving my career goals, I have registered to take level one of the CFA examination in June 201X and plan to complete the entire examination series upon graduation from Top Ten. Armed with the CFA certification and Top School's international bent, strength in finance and management training, I will be ready to place that call to the trader in China, conduct the videoconference with Tokyo, and visit the CFO in Thailand.